The Pansy League

The National Football League has been a sport filled with hard nose tackling, pummeling collisions, and tough as nails players. That type of football had been played since the beginning of the sport in August 20, 1920 until about the 1990s when the NFL became a comedic television show. The NFL is known for the intensity of every single player on the field. The crushing blows that each player takes week in and week out; but as technology advances, the softer the NFL is becoming.

The National Football League has turned into a money craving industry by fining every player that does something that goes against what they feel is right and wrong. The world in this century has become “sue happy”, meaning if they feel violated or threatened in any way, they will sue you. The NFL has realized that and has dealt with those kind of people because an ex player ends up with brain issues from repeated concussions. It is understandable that they are trying to make money to fight against those kinds of people that are trying to make money off of their deceased or mentally fragile family members.

It is noticeable that concussions and future brain injuries can be looped back to when they played football; however you cannot blame the National Football League for all of their health issues. Society is quick to judge and throw around blame, however if you pay close attention and ask ex players’, they will tell you that they would hide concussions to keep playing.

When you watch game film from the 1990s and before, the players would be decimated their opponents with the goal to win the game at all costs. When researching the top ten hardest hitters to ever play in the NFL, there would be nobody that has played in the 21st century. The NFL has become what I like to call “the pansy league”, because players are not allowed to hit high and are not allowed to hit low. With all these rules, the defenders have no way to control the way they tackle in the heat of the moment, so they get a penalty for hitting an offensive player, the same hit would be considered clean twenty years ago.

What comes to mind when thinking of the most dominate defenders in the NFL, the names that come to mind are Ronnie Lott, Lawrence Taylor, Deacon Jones, Jack Lambert, John Lynch, and Dick Butkus. These players would play for the love of the game, while doing whatever is possible to win. Ronnie Lott is considered a “heroic lunatic” because he had part of his pinky finger amputated in the locker room so that he can go back on to the field.

There are some players in the NFL that have that same mentality and tenacity as Ronnie Lott, but if they reciprocate the same hits and tackles as Lott, they would be flagged for unnecessary roughness.

The National Football League will always be blamed for any injuries whether it be physical or mental to an ex player because the player spent most of his youth life in the league. The NFL is doing the best they can to accommodate for the complaining families of the players, but all that it is doing for the fans of the game is turning the league into a pathetic game of two hand touch.

As a fan of the NFL, since the beginning of my life, I have seen how depleted the game is becoming. The players are getting protected more, but in a way where you cannot tackle properly, making the game harder for defenses. They make a great play, but then get reprimanded for it because it breaks the new rules that have been implemented. The future is looking dimmer and dimmer for the NFL, but as a fan of the game, I will never let the excitement and adrenaline rushes leave my life.